The game of the year in the ACC is still a week away. But even as the anticipation begins to build, there’s plenty of intrigue to keep our attention as we count down the days until Florida State travels to Clemson for what amounts to the Atlantic Division championship.

The biggest uncertainty surrounds three injured starting quarterbacks whose availability won’t be determined until just before kickoff. As we wait to find out who will and won’t play today, here are five burning questions to keep in mind:

1. Which injured quarterback is most likely to play today?

C.J. Brown suffered a concussion last week against Florida State

.C. State’s Brandon Mitchell (broken foot) and Duke’s Anthony Boone (broken collarbone) are both listed as questionable after missing significant time because of injuries. Maryland’s C.J. Brown is listed as questionable after suffering a concussion in last week’s game against Florida State. Of the three, Mitchell is the most likely to see action today. For one thing, he’s been practicing the longest – having returned to the field Sunday and increasing his workload with each passing day. Another tipoff is that his coach, Dave Doeren, has been more optimistic than Duke’s David Cutcliffe and Maryland’s Randy Edsall in his assessment of his quarterback’s playing chances. Most importantly, the Wolfpack is in much greater need of the jolt Mitchell can provide to its stagnant offense. By contrast, the Blue Devils haven’t missed a beat with backup Brandon Connette under center, As such, they can afford to be more cautious in bringing Boone back against Navy today. As for Brown, Edsall might not have much of a choice given the nature of his players’ injury. Even without him, the Terps stand a good chance of getting by against a Virginia team that got blown out by Ball State a week ago.

2. How much of an impact will Mitchell have on N.C. State’s offense?

Brandon Mitchell is off his crutches and return to return for NC State

It’s probably too much to ask for Mitchell to step right in after five weeks of inactivity and pick up today against Syracuse where he left off on those first two amazing possessions to start the season before suffering his foot injury. But even with a little rust, the fifth-year transfer from Arkansas promises to breathe some of the life that’s been missing back in the Wolfpack’s offense in his absence. With all due respect to backup Pete Thomas, who did what he could while going 2-2 as the starter, Mitchell’s dual-threat abilities are much better suited to the game plan Doeren and offensive coordinator Matt Canada want to run with their uptempo spread attack. After last week’s disappointment at Wake Forest, his return couldn’t come at a better time for a team looking to regain some momentum heading into its midseason bye week.

3. How big is Duke’s game against Navy?

The bowl hopes of David Cutcliffe’s Blue Devils could ride on today’s game against Navy

Given the backloaded nature of the Blue Devils’ schedule, today’s result may very well be the deciding factor on whether or not they return to the postseason for the second straight year. A victory against the Midshipmen would give Cutcliffe’s team four wins, just two shy of bowl eligibility. A loss, however, would mean that Duke would need to at least split its final six ACC contests to reach the magic number of six wins. That’s still not out of the question, but with only two remaining home dates, matchups against nationally ranked Virginia Tech and Miami and a pair of rivalry games against UNC and State, it might be too much to ask. One thing going in the Blue Devils’ favor is that they’ve already faced one triple option team in Georgia Tech, so Navy’s run-oriented attack shouldn’t be as foreign to them as it is to most opponents.

On Sept. 21, the Panthers rolled up 598 yards of total offense and 58 points while winning a 58-55 shootout at Duke. One week later, they held Virginia to a single field goal in winning a 14-3 defensive struggle in which neither team gained more than 200 total yards. So which Pitt team shows up today at Virginia Tech coming off a bye week? As much offensive potential as coach Paul Chryst’s team has when quarterback Tom Savage and receivers Devin Street and Tyler Boyd are clicking the way they did at Duke, Aaron Donald and the Panthers’ defense would be advised to bring their “A” game with them to Blacksburg against a Hokies’ team that leads the ACC and ranks fifth nationally in total defense.

5. Is there any danger of Clemson looking past Boston College to next week’s showdown with Florida State?

Sammy Watkins and the Tigers shouldn’t get caught looking past BC

While it’s only human nature for the Tigers to be at least a little distracted by their upcoming game against the Seminoles, there’s little to no chance they’ll blow the opportunity that awaits them next week by looking past the Eagles. Especially at home. If BC’s loss to Florida State two weeks ago is any indication, coach Dabo Swinney’s team should have little trouble getting through today’s game unscathed even if it’s not at its best. Consider that the Seminoles didn’t bother to show up until just before halftime and still managed to hang 48 points on an overmatched Eagles’ defense. Clemson’s spread attack is even more potent and experienced. And while BC was able to move the ball and score on FSU, its reliance on the running game should play right into the strength of a surprising Tigers defense that ranks among the top 20 nationally in scoring at just 16.6 ppg. Though the score might end up closer than it should, the outcome should never be in doubt.

That’s enough for this week. Enjoy the games!

And don’t forget to follow my live updates from the N.C. State-Syracuse game from Carter-Finley Stadium starting at 3:30 p.m. on Twitter @starnewsacc.